Cipher's Invasion
by DonLawride
Summary: David, a young Viridian City boy, sees his life take an unexpected twist when he receives a letter and is forced to travel to Orre and fight against Cipher... however, will the plan work out that perfectly? What obstacles stand in his way? Why him? OCTrip
1. The Prologue

It all began like this…

_Outskirts of Pewter City, Evening_

"Dr. Hailbird, sir…?"  
The voice shyly broke the silence long installed in the darkened room. The shadows nearly completely concealed a tall, handsome man, garbed in a crimson pullover and a gabardine tinted cream-color. A tie hid the shirt underneath, impeccably washed, as if it would brightly sparkle in white if any string of light shone back upon it.  
His deep eyes were uncovered by the bit of hair already missing from his forehead, revealing the skin below.  
His large hands, half covered by the gabardine's long sleeve, held between them a solemn parchment attached to a wooden plate thanks to a clip.  
"Yes?" He spoke, his grave voice clearly influencing the lady at the door's reaction.  
"A package… The package… it's arrived…" She stammered, allowing light to bath a long box protected by a metallic film. An insignia lay on its top, proudly exhibiting its three triangles.  
A certain shine seemed to come to the man's eyes, but his overall expression also seemed to tell a completely different story; as if his face was in conflict with itself.  
Nonetheless, he spoke with an evidently amazed tone as the box came to view:  
"At last… At long, long last…!" He sighed, slowly marching towards the box, as if it had captivated him in its luster. "Have you… confirmed… its content…?" His words came out paused and with effort; but he continued when the woman shortly nodded. "That's… that's good…"  
The box switched hands before being placed on a busy-looking desk.  
"The Snag Machine parts are all there, Dr. Hailbird…"  
"Thank you, Miss Smith. You may go." The man indirectly yet kindly wanted her to leave him alone; he always needed time to think and space to perform the act of thinking.  
The woman obediently bowed and smiled. "Thank you sir."  
Dr. Hailbird swiftly nodded, flashing a weak smile as the woman turned and closed the door behind her.  
Just as the silent lock was heard, the man turned ecstatic in a rather calm way as he lounged towards the box to unlock the case, always repeating to himself the same thing:  
"I mustn't procrastinate. The Snag Machine must be ready soon…"  
As if it were a menace uttered by his own mouth, the man's head rose to face the picture just in front of him, concealed in a frame hanging on the wall. The man himself, another man and two young boys, one relatively older than the other, stood in front of a wide landscape.  
Without noticing, the man's hands had automatically taken out and sorted all of the machine's components; an endless list of machine parts was now strewn across the desk, desperately asking to be pieced back together.  
"It is soon… that something will happen…" A shadow, tinted somewhat brighter than its surroundings, began to materialize next to the man's shoulder. It seemed to be a statue, a hollow shell wearing a crown that resembled a quarter moon. "Was it not, Shedinja?"  
The creature emitted a low buzz and began floating up and down, as if it were nodding.  
"We must make haste, then… The future… it may be at stake…"


	2. The Wind Clearly Blows North

**The wind clearly blows North…**

_Viridian City, Evening_

* * *

"_And the battle is on! Today, we have two special contestants dueling for the title of the Indigo Plateau Pokémon League!"_

_"You said it, Jack! Today we're having a really heated battle! On the blue corner, Red!"_

_"And on the red corner, Blue! Actual Champion of the Indigo Plateau League!"_

_"Red's released his Pokémon! Pikachu and Charizard bravely stand together to face Blue's Alakazam and Blastoise!"_

_"This is gonna be one hell of a battle! Stay tu-…"_ The Pokémon on the screen suddenly faded into black, as well as the large stadium around them.

The boy, roughly ten years old, comfortably lying on the bed, threw the remote in a random direction and exhaled a long sigh. A machine, apparently designed to look like a wristwatch, stood by the lamp, showing the hour and minutes over a simple, monotonous green background. A small antennae icon on the bottom was followed by several bars, and a second battery icon was displayed on the right below several other bars. The machine was an old model Pokégear.

The boy's long dark hair, partly falling over his left eye, was his most distinctive trait, along with the gray jacket hung by the room's door. A small map of a region around a bay lay silent next to a yellow backpack, sat next to the TV set.

And the boy's name was written in big, bold letters over his Trainer Card.

And his name… was David Lawride.

"Still ain't time, pal." He commented, impatiently looking at the Pokégear's screen. The "time" was none other than Oak's Pokémon Show, airing every night on Kanto frequencies. Being an avid listener, David knew well what the ol' coot would say before he even spoke. The simple statement of the Pokémon's name would immediately be followed by the Route, cave or wherever it could be found.

The young boy lived almost alone in Viridian City; his parents, Dave and Lia Lawride, were both experts in ruins. The two explorers had a certain passion for the Seafoam Islands, where they spent most of their free time digging and mining; or so they said, anyway. David always placed a doubt when they told him of their discoveries, but only in his mind. So again, it was no surprise that David inherited this passion for exploration.

However, being an underage, he had never ventured any further than Pallet or Pewter, where acquaintances lived. In any case, David had gone out of Kanto with his parents; the trip to Johto which had granted him the Poochyena who still walks on his side.

Or in this case, lay by his side, both in pretty much the same fashion as a Slowpoke gazing into the empty horizon, whereas the two gazed at the Pokégear as David scrolled through the frequencies in search of Prof. Oak's Pokémon Talk with Mary.

And then there was always the fact that David had nowhere to go. He was an enthusiast for Gym Badges and especially medals from competitions (the medals in the Silver Conference always caught his eye), and so one would think he'd like to venture out to collect them.

One would be wrong, because David's heart wasn't at home; rather, in Johto.

The boy and the Poochyena yawned in unison.

"We aren't lucky today, it seems…" He added, sinking his face in the bed's sheets.

And just as he finished talking, a very familiar tune started playing. It had to be it!

"Alright! I found it!" As if it were a big discovery, David jumped from the bed and ran to the window. "Let's see if I can get it tuned a little better…"

Poochyena opened his jaw as if he were about to speak bark, but instead sat his head on the paws and sighed.

_He'll never change…_ He thought, watching his trainer mess with the Pokégear's buttons.

Poochyena, no matter how loyal he was to David, seemed to have a very contrasting personality; one that always evened-out the duet's behavior.

This however, didn't deny him some liberties, and being barely anything more than a pup, Poochyena didn't know very well what behavior would be the most exact appropriate one.

David chose to keep Poochyena when the young Pokémon approached him at a Safari. He seemed curious, intrigued by the boy (who was just as young at the time), and seeing as David had no Pokémon of his own, the two parents kept Poochyena.

Ever since, Poochyena seemed to be David's closest friend, aside from the general people of Viridian, and became his most frequent company since his parents were almost always out; and they were curiously in when David was asleep, thus the notes they left on the kitchen, which were something like a birthday present for the boy.

Because of that, Poochyena was trained – indeed, trained – to be a "dog guard" of sorts and his own Pokémon for battles.

"Dang it!" The boy cursed as he threw the Pokégear to the bed. "I lost it!"

_No kidding…?_ Poochyena replied in his mind; when he in fact only twitched his ear and sighed once more.

"It's useless; we won't be hearing it tod-…"

The door on the lower floor knocked. It was a consistent knock, one that evidently showed urgency.

David hesitated for a moment, but ran down the stairs, heading to the front door in his night clothes. A figure stood at the door, his height passing even the entrance's own. And David knew well that it was tall (a Tropius once tried to force its way in, and only by an inch it didn't).

The figure knocked on the door again. Something seemed off, for the simple fact that it wasn't moving. What before were grave hits on the metallic surface now calmed to slower, more periodic knocks.

His hesitation returned; only one thing came to his mind.

"Poochyena." He called in a very low voice. "Come here."

The Pokémon's short claws produced a click as he moved over the wooden floor, tumbling down the steps. David rolled his eyes and cleaned its fur.

"Stay by me, and don't do anything unless I say so, get it?" The boy instructed, being interrupted by the door again before Poochyena could answer with a nod. "Get it?"

With a confirmation, David got up and slowly walked towards the door, the Pokémon following close behind.

But he wasn't ready to open up quite yet; David simply turned the knob and opened it slightly, peeking outside.

The figure was completely covered by the shadow; while it was a clear night, no moon was visible, and the street lamps by his house had gone haywire (even if so was already true two weeks before).

"Mister David Lawride…?" The figure spoke, showing a bit of its face by approaching the inside of the house. In an action-reaction chain, David simultaneously closed the door as the figure got closer.

It was clearly a he; and "he" was accompanied by a rather large Pokémon who sat on the grass next to him.

But the Pokémon, David could recognize: a Pelipper. And who else brought a Pelipper in Viridian City all the time?

"You again?" David muttered as he opened the door completely to illuminate the postman outside. "What is it that you have against knowing this IS my house?"

Indeed, the mailman had something against it, and it was the fact that he had a certain difficulty in remembering places and people. And David knew this very well too, because the mailman insisted to deliver his mail personally AND with his Pelipper AND always confirm if it was David who was getting it. AND.

There were so many clauses in his contract that David now joked about it instead of getting annoyed; what was there to be done…?

"I have mail for you."

_No kidding…?_ Both Poochyena and David thought, as the latter accepted a pile of envelopes.

"Have a good night, sir!" The mailman bid, leaving the house while rearranging his hat.

"Good night… to you too…?"

David closed the door very slowly – a clear sign that something just wasn't right and his mind was trying to piece it back together. "Why does the guy deliver mail at night? Shouldn't he do it in the morning…?"

David put the pile on the kitchen table, sorting them according to what they could contain.

"Municipal Hall… Bills… Invitations… Bills… Congratulations… Bills… Bills…" He spoke aloud as many piles started to form around. He stopped once a particular envelope was reached. It was a curious looking one, because of its borders and the seal with a Charizard's head imprinted.

The sender's name was somewhat blurred, but a part of it could still be read: "…ane".

The recipient, though, seemed to be very generic: it was addressed for "The Lawride".

_If it's for pa and us… It can't do anything bad to take a look…_

He threw a look at Poochyena, as if to confirm if he agreed.

The Pokémon frowned – would have shrugged if he could – and let out a short [i]I don't know[/i] made of growls.

"Let's open it, then." David decided, carefully ripping the top of the envelope to retrieve the parchment.

Contrasting the envelope's luxury, the paper itself was quite worn-out, and like the sender's name, the letters were blurry in parts.

_Mr Lawride…_

_We are aware of your prowess's in the Championships five years ago in Sinnoh. As such, my contacts have decided upon choosing you as the next owner of our latest invention…_

_Please, understand our position._

_Come to Vermilion Port Tuesday two weeks from now. We will provide you with more information on the subject._

_With hopes of reaching an agreement…_

_Orre Pokémon Lab HQ._

"…Orre…? Championships…?"

David thought carefully about these terms. What was this "Orre"? When did his father participate in Championships? How come there were no medals hanging in the walls, no cups behind a thin glass window? No pictures in golden frames? No diplomas?

"I should call him about th-…" He started; but he couldn't help trailing off at a new idea being born in his mind. His eyes turned to Poochyena with a brilliant shine upon them, as if a light bulb appeared above his head. "What if… just if… we were to go there ourselves?"

Poochyena was surprised with this decision – leaving their houses to just go to Vermilion to meet some mysterious man he didn't even know? And who guaranteed it was a man? What if it was a kidnaper? A burglar?

"Come on, Poochyena! It'll be fun!" David added, seeing as Poochyena started to retreat at the thought.

David's thrill was started to fade away. He wouldn't dare to venture out with him… but knowing he wasn't being supported didn't exactly leave a very happy feeling upon the boy.

"…So that's how it's gonna be?" David got up and turned, heading up after placing the letter on the kitchen table.

Poochyena moaned in a low voice, lowering his ears like a puppy trying to receive his owner's pity would.

He followed David up very quietly, but stopped halfway up when he saw that David wasn't noticing him.

_S-Sorry… David…_ The Pokémon thought, facing the ground with a sad look.

Truth was, David wasn't at all bothered with Poochyena's decision. Having inherited the enthusiasm for adventure, he also owned a very acute sense of awareness about the dangers – such sense, unfortunately, did not often influence his decisions.

However, David now reconsidered whether he wanted to go or not.

Why would he go? To prove he could do anything? He had no trouble of that sort with anybody – he was actually someone to be commended for taking care of a Pokémon like Poochyena.

It could sadden him a bit that he couldn't go because his only partner didn't agree upon going – but it also relieved him a bit that someone balanced his thoughts.

So David was meditating over the thing; stretched on his bed, trying to decide what the best decision was.

His thoughts now wondered how right Poochyena could be. If there was something David learned from relatives, it was that Pokémon WERE aware of what was going on.

_Do I… really want to do this? Leave my home and wander to the unknown?..._

"…What am I thinking? I should've just gone already! I can't…" He stopped for a moment; a silent noise caught his attention. It was apparently from downstairs, and the sound of it was familiar: "Poochyena!"

David leapt from his bed and tumbled down the staircase, only to find Poochyena snarling at the door with his ears perked up and head down, as if ready to attack, and the boy could see the reason: another shadow stood on the other side of the door; and this one wasn't as friendly, for the lock was actually being forced when the door was evidently closed and locked. A short feeling of panic assaulted David's mind.

"Who's there?" David yelled in fear, and the shout made the shadow stand straight. "Show yourself! _Get ready, Poochyena!_"

But before they could even respond, the door blast opened and a beam erupted towards the two, only giving them time to leap sideways and avoid a frigid death from a well-aimed Ice Beam that frosted the escape upstairs.

The shadow walked in and took the form of a tall man in black, a dark bonnet marked with a red "R" insignia and another yet bigger one on the chest. A Dewgong accompanied him, preparing another Ice Beam, this time at Poochyena.

"Stop it! STOP!"

The man's face was partially covered by the bonnet's shade, but enough was visible to spot a devilish grin sprouting.

"Give me a good reason! Dewgong! Finish that mutt with Ice Beam!"

The Pokémon gave a battle cry and began to absorb a strange, blue energy on its horn, which was then released at full speed as an Ice Beam directed at Poochyena.

The defenseless pup simply covered his eyes and cowered, vainly trying to hide his fear.

"Poochyena!" But it was no use shouting, for the beam had already pierced through the Pokémon and turned him into a statue of ice, immobile in his terror. "Stop it!"

"And now for you, twerp! Use Ice Beam, Dewgong!" The Ice Beam was already being released even before the man finished hollering the command; the beam travelled at high speed to hit and seemingly stab the kid, producing yet another statue of ice in the middle of the living room. "Humph! Another success for our list!"

The man took a note pad from his pocket and wrote a cross on it; many other crosses were by its side on a well-organized table, seemingly keeping the losses and wins. The record was perfect.

"Now to find that machine…" He continued, putting the block away. He would've continued again if he hadn't spotted a piece of paper over the balcony, where David had put the letter. "Well, what's this…?"

Picking the parchment up, his eyes read the letter diagonally, only to conclude something that left him visibly upset.

"The stupid machine isn't here… It's already in Orre…!" He crushed the paper in his fury. "That geek tricked us! We're too late!"

Rampaging outside, he blasted the door into pieces with his fist, followed by Dewgong, which floated gently behind him.

The two statues were left there, frozen, dreadful, immobile, facing an uncanny evil which never faded away, no matter how long they stood there, under the moonlight…


	3. Enemies, Foes and Rivals Alike

**This is probably one of the chapters I put the most work into; I have about 3 more ready, but I'll put them up in regular periods over this and the following month.**

* * *

**Enemies, Foes and Rivals alike…**

_Viridian City, Morning_

* * *

_Cling. Crack._

The two sounds took the atmosphere in very short intervals.

_Cling. Cling cling._

The two last were hastened.

_Cling cling cling cling!_

The hurry inherent to the sounds started a heartbeat. Accelerated, but a heartbeat, nonetheless.

_CRACK!_

The last sound's origin completely ripped apart a large chunk of ice, uncovering the boy concealed within the frosted matter. It took a second for the boy to start trembling all of a sudden, shaking as much as his small body could take, just before falling to the ground on his knees – then on his hands, and finally, face, observing the ice spread around the house with frozen eyes of deep fear. His lips were immobile; his skin, cold as the Antarctic winds.

_Cling cling cling!_

"Rock Smash!" A voice suddenly yelled; it seemed to the boy as if it was the first voice he heard in a hundred years.

_CRAAACK!_

The brief, piercing sound of the ice shards fall on the ground ached in the boy's ears and mind. But the final stab was delivered when a moan filled the air, albeit a very short one – the very same sound a young pup would have given out when injured.

That enough pumped the boy's blood to his heart – the blood he needed to release a vigorous scream:

"POOCHYENA!" He called at the top of his lungs, feeling the energy he needed to get up returning to his hands and legs.

With a surge of energy, David hastily jumped back to his feet – but his readiness was a moment short-lived, as that same rush of power that crept in him quickly vanished away from his body.

Knowing his weakness returning, David made one last, desperate leap – towards Poochyena.

A glimpse of the person next to Poochyena's ice statue still caught his eye – enough to see a red-haired boy next to a Sneasel which sharpened its claws.

"If I were to leave you here for two minutes longer…" That boy started, staring down at him. "You'd be dead."

But these words did not affect him; David solely tried to hug his Pokémon, protecting him from the cold, as if the Dewgong were about to strike again – he felt him, trembling fiercely between his arms.

Watching this, the redheaded boy frowned in disgust.

"Humph. Make sure you don't mess with Team Rocket again." He spat, turning away.

However, this was enough for the boy to finally _hear_ - David's eyes opened widely at the words.

"T-Team… Rocket…?" Fear – or, perhaps, cold – made him stutter.

Yet the boy and the Sneasel were long gone.

"W-We f-faced T-Team Rocket in the e-eyes, P-Poochyena…" He spoke with a certain pride in his words, forcing a smile that could comfort the Pokémon; receiving no reply, he pats the pup on the top of the head. "Y-You're injured… C-Come on… I s-should take you to the C-Center…"

With cost – even with the support of the table which he clutched – David slowly got up again, cringing when a sudden pain threw his body against the wall.

"Ugh… T-This might be a bit m-more difficult than I t-thought…" He desperately tried not to seem hopeless – but his mind created such a barrier to any positive thoughts that all that came from his mouth were whimpers.

Still, perseverance took the upper hand – and soon, David was back on his feet. His trembling hadn't ceased – he stopped for a moment, allowing the energy used in getting up to at least partially return.

With a deep breath of confidence, he tumbled towards his room, planning on fetching his jacket and using it to cover Poochyena. He tried, he tried to keep a steady pace; but something seemed to restrain him. It was an invisible barrier, keeping him from walking a straight line.

His faltering mind vacillated: was he seeing what his eyes showed him, or was he in such a state his eyes tricked him?

Taking the most positive act, and according to the light in the house, David concluded it shouldn't be much later than seven in the morning – in spite of the summer weather, mornings in Viridian were always cold and foggy, like certain cities he had read about. So taking Poochyena out while he was still recovering from a frozen status wasn't the best idea he could have.

Eventually, though, David managed to reach his room. The jacket was still hanging on the wall – so David took it, and took another one for himself.

He took less than a second to put it on – thanks to the warm jacket, he felt like he was already feeling a bit better – perhaps it was a symbol of confidence to him. Being frozen was no joke, after all. So David managed to walk down the stairs much faster than he climbed up, quickly covering Poochyena with the garbing.

"Hold on, Pooch. We'll be in the Center in no time." He assured, placing Poochyena under his arm. The jacket helped a lot; the warmth had already taken him in its comfort.

Without wasting time, David ran through the city in hurry, crossing the empty morning streets in attempt to find the large, red roofed building.

And joy began to feed his determination when the huge 'P' on its top came into view, unveiling the rest of the building below.

"It's there! Hang on!"

David used the remains of energy in his body to sprint as fast as he could towards the building – over the bridge where the river's fresh waters flew, across the classical lush of the parks before storming into the building with Poochyena under his arm.

The attendants were stunned; to say the least – some even hesitated in yelling.

But the nurses were already accustomed to these cases – and immediately came to his aid, taking Poochyena from under his arm and into the nursery room.

David, on the other hand, fell to the ground, collapsed from exhaustion. But this time, a few attendants did come, taking him together to the center's sofas, clearing away some of the trainers already sat there.

"He needs some sleep. Let him rest." One of the attendants spoke, signaling another attendant to bring a warm blanket.

The blanket did come, but also an order to go to the counter, where a nurse already awaited the attendant.

"The Poochyena?"

"Minor injuries from quite an attack… it's lucky it survived. Few Pokémon would have taken such a blow and still lived to tell it." The nurse spoke. "Seemingly, the Poochyena was cold as ice, so we think it was frozen, for some reason…"

"Anything precise?"

"We can only tell it was a direct blow. We suggest a beam or shard of ice."

"Hm… **Ice Beam**…" The attendant deduced, frowning. "It's possible… Team Rocket's been terrifying this town as of late. Numerous cases of frozen victims have been registered…"

"Then the boy can consider himself lucky if he survives this…"

"He will." The attendant immediately replied. The nurse faced the attendant with surprise.

It stopped for a moment, facing the boy lying down on the sofa. The sun was starting to creep between the windows, bathing the center in its deserved summer heat.

"…He will."

* * *

"Boy… Wake up…"

_Huh…? Who…?_

"You've been asleep for too long, wake up!"

_Oh…? For… too long…?_

David opened his eyes quickly, but as quickly shut them again, fending them off from the intense sun rays.

"What… What time is it…?"

"It's… hum…" The voice stopped, presumably to check the time. "Seven."

"Seven…? I've been asleep for some minutes…?"

"No, no. Seven in the evening. Seven 'p.m.'."

The light didn't matter now – David opened his eyes as widely as he could and got up, a sudden anxiousness taking over.

"WHAAAT? Where's Poochyena?"

He couldn't even stop speaking and something had already thrown him back to his sleeping position, fiercely licking his face in excitement.

Or in this case, someone.

"Poochyena!" He joyfully cried out, holding the pup in his hands. "You've recovered!"

David stopped in his speech, though, looking around.

"But… Where are we?"

His eyes met those of an adult woman, softly tinted in blue as they stared into his with a warm smile, whom approached the sofa and sat by his side. She was dressed in the usual nurse uniform, but had a star pinned next to the insignia on her bonnet, like a badge of sorts.

"You're in Viridian City's Pokémon Center, boy!" She spoke, granting him space to raise at least his torso. "You burst in here with your Poochyena this morning, but then you collapsed and were sleeping since then."

"Oh… So that's what happened." It was odd, but he felt like there was an empty void in his mind, where these memories should've been.

"You looked terribly tired. Did you come from far away? Do you still remember?"

"Yes, I… I mean, no… I mean… Gosh…" Confusion scrambled his thoughts, not making any sense at all. Taking his hands to the forehead, he stopped for a moment to gather his words. "I'm from Viridian; I live just on the other side of the park…"

"Oh… I see…" She replied – and as if she remembered something, she halted and went for something in her uniform's pocket. "Your Poochyena recovered very quickly… but you should still have these."

David threw the blanket away and sat on the sofa, trying to see the items on the woman's hands.

A few small bottles, tinted blue on the top, and some common status healers such as a Parlyz Heal and an Antidote were in her left hand, and a handful of berries stood on the other.

David stared in amaze at the items – yet hesitated upon realizing he had nothing to carry them. In his rush, his backpack had stayed at home… and the jackets wouldn't be able to carry that many items in their pockets.

"No… I don't know where I could take them…" He replied, frowning for letting such precious utensils go away.

Poochyena didn't think the same, though; he immediately jumped to the woman's lap and bit one of the berries, enjoying its flavor.

"What is that?" David asked, picking the berry up. It was a spotted, golden-colored fruit resembling an odd lemon.

"Oh, that's a Sitrus Berry!" The woman seemed surprised, for some reason. "I didn't know we picked those up…"

"Sitrus, huh…?" David repeated, sitting back to examine the fruit – but not before Poochyena jumped to David's lap and stole another bit of the berry.

"Your Poochyena seems to like them very much… Seems like it has pretty good taste!" She commented, getting up. "I'll put these in a bag for you, so you don't have to worry about carrying them. Do you happen to own a PC account?" David shook his head, unknowing what a PC account even was. "If you had, we could store those for you, and then we'd save you from the pain of carrying them… It's not like they're very heavy, but…"

"Can I create one, though?" He innocently asked.

Another attendant approached the woman and pat her shoulder, calling her attention.

What the two began mumbling to each other was impossible for David to understand, so he just stood and stared, waiting for the reply to his question.

They spoke for some minutes; finally, the woman and the attendant split ways.

"Not right now; But we'll give you a note you can deliver in another Pokémon Center for that effect." She answered at last, presenting a card with a signature and some paragraphs. "The service for registration isn't available in Viridian, unfortunately… so you will have to go to another Center to do it."

A second present passed hands; this time, the items she had previously offered, neatly placed inside a plastic bag.

"You know how to work with those items?" David nodded but then hesitated, searching for some item he couldn't recognize inside the bag. "Good, then. Well, your parents must be worried sick about you… Since you had no identification, we just tried to help."

David nodded again and got up, Poochyena always by his side.

"There's nothing more we can do now." The attendant happily replied, bowing like a nurse would usually do upon healing a trainer's Pokémon. "We hope you come back again! And good luck!"

David vacillated – should he also bow, or should he just say something nice and bid farewell?

"I deeply appreciate your help." He spoke in his still rough vocabulary, using a word he didn't even know the proper use of. "Thanks."

Poochyena barked in agreement, wagging his tail.

"And you protect this boy here, you hear me?" The woman instructed the Pokémon, who proudly stood with his head pulled forward and firm legs.

But it was a position he couldn't handle yet – so he quickly recoiled, already feeling the pain of extending himself like that.

Those watching laughed a bit, and even the Pokémon seemed to find it funny.

"Good luck on whatever comes ahead. You've trusted your Pokémon, and your Pokémon has trusted you – I feel a fine trainer in the making."

David blushed slightly, and walked away to avoid showing it.

"T-Thanks! I'll make sure I pass by sometime!"

Stuttering? Cold again?

Or was it plain embarrassment?

…he wouldn't stay to find out.

* * *

Not much later, David found himself back on his room, lying on the same bed his previous had begun in.

It was curious. Just a day ago… he was just searching for a radio show… and then a package came in…

He took a risky decision – now he considered it again, after suffering the accident in the night before. Poochyena didn't seem to mind it anymore – he relaxingly slept next to his trainer, curled up to gather heat.

Was venturing to those far lands something his heart really wished? That fear he felt when he saw the Dewgong shooting an Ice Beam at him and Poochyena… did he want to feel it again?

Seeing Poochyena so vibrant, so energetic and so vigorous… after such an event – it was certainly something he could look up to and commend. Night had settled outside…

Going to that region, Orre… was it something he could handle doing? Had he anything to prove? Had he anything to DO there?

…wait. Where were the…

He suddenly sat on the bed, his heart beating at a crazy rate.

"The invitation!" He had **completely** forgotten about it!

Rushing downstairs, David turned the entire lower floor upside-down, searching for that seemingly important piece of paper…

But… it was gone. Gone! **GONE**!

"N-No… this can't be…" He muttered to himself. He couldn't… he couldn't have lost such an important paper! No! It wasn't possible! It couldn't be… An invitation… probably not even meant for him…

He felt tears crawling to his eyes… his fragile ego had been badly damaged by this.

The dewdrops slowly moistened the floor as a thin string of salty water flew down his face… His hands covered his face in anger, in regret, in suffering… the pain seemed to grow each and every time he remembered the loss of such an important paper…

"What to do… what to do… what to do…?" His mind desperately forced him to speak these hopeless words, obscuring the right thing to do.

There was… There WAS… one thing… he could do.

Thinking about this suddenly eased his mind… his guilt…

"The invitation was stolen…" He mumbled, facing the floor with his eyes wide open upon realizing such an easy solution. "But the package is still waiting for me in Vermillion…"

…

There was no way to run from this duty now.

…

Only one thing could be done.

Rising with all his might, David wiped the tears away and solemnly faced the map hung on the wall.

"I must get ready." He simply told himself, running upstairs as these words echoed in his mind, repeating infinitely in a loop which attempted to imprint this goal in such a way he wouldn't forget.

* * *

Like diamond eyes, the moonlight shone through the small window just by his bed. The room was empty; not a trace of anything that belonged to him aside, perhaps, from his bed with messed sheets and the small lamp on the desk.

Setting the backpack with all of the items he had been given at the Pokémon Center that afternoon plus some changes in clothing, David threw a glance at the three papers over the desk. Leaving wasn't probably something his parents wouldn't allow; heck, they were out most of the time.

But it was different this time. It wasn't about them, it was about him.

He would be leaving for an indefinite amount of time; and some god knew how long he'd take to come back to his hometown in Viridian City - [b]IF[/b] he'd even come back.

But he was bound to have trouble if the package wasn't received. There was no time to think about other options. So letting that so-called Orre Laboratory HQ down wasn't an option, either.

The note for his parents was simple and direct: he'd be leaving soon. Seeing how they'd probably not be there soon, he even wrote the day he left.

Sporting his jacket of choice and a pair of jeans, along with the black shirt he was so fond of, David put the backpack on and strapped the Pokégear. The PokéBall belt was also ready, with all the six spaces on the back of the utility.

It was the start of a new life for him and Poochyena, who impatiently sat on the bed with a puzzled look. What had been this decision David had taken all of a sudden, without even telling him?

But finally, setting for the door, David slowly thought his words.

"Poochyena" He paused, swallowing all of the emotions at once. It wasn't setting out for the first time that left him as impatient as his only partner. It was what could await him across the sea. For Vermillion was his next stop. The first of many. "We're leaving... tonight."

* * *

And so they did.

Caring to leave the house locked up, David took one last look at his home.

It was time.

He had read about this, curiously; how young boys eventually left their homes in regions around the world to dedicate themselves to a journey in capturing Pokémon.

…though his was no journey for capturing Pokémon, nor were his ambitions to become a "Pokémon Master" (personally for him, that was the worst excuse ever invented to leave a home).

His goals were very, very clear.

He **would** find that package in Vermilion.

And he **would** go to Orre.

* * *

**Before going, I'd like to add this last piece of concept art for the story:**

**We're Leaving**


	4. If Anyone Asks, I Don't Know You

**How does a Wednesday weekly update sound?**

* * *

**If anyone asks, I don't know you**

_Viridian Forest Proximities, Morning_

* * *

The first sun rays began creeping from behind Mountain Silver. David smiled and steadied his pace, watching as the woods around became shaded in the bluish hue of the morning sky.

In that time, and since he left Viridian City several hours ago, David wandered aimlessly in the road to Indigo Plateau, like he usually did, each and every night.

Though it was the last night he'd spend there, curiosity still assailed his mind. This interest was focused on the awaited return of the new Champion; he knew the runner-ups' names perfectly. _Red_ or _Blue_. And they would have to go through Viridian City to reach Pallet Town, so he wanted to take a good look at them. After all, seeing them on TV and seeing them live were two completely different things.

However, he was somewhat disappointed when nobody came. Maybe the battle hadn't ended yet? Or maybe he just barely missed their coming. He did spend a day asleep, didn't he?

Of course, these walks through Route 22 weren't limited to that curiosity. The place itself sent chills down David's spine – it was the entrance to the Victory Road, and the gateway to the Johto Region. Its influence and authority was undeniable.

Being a trainer himself, he knew what it was like.

But this one walk ended rather quickly. Renovations in Route 22 had started before he could notice, and a cemented road was being built on its end. The path to Johto was therefore blocked; and so was the path to the Victory Road.

And now, having crossed the route following north of Viridian City, David found himself between the dense trees of Viridian Forest, stepping the mossy ground under an increasingly strong light as the day by. It was just how he had heard in a radio show: The forest was brighter than he thought.

Poochyena walked by his side, occasionally stopping to play with a fallen leaf, or to watch the Bug Pokémon show and hide in the foliage above.

He knew they were being observed from everywhere, even if the trainers that usually trained in those woods were still asleep in the comfort of their homes. Just thinking about it left David feeling somewhat envious of them.  
But he was on a mission. He couldn't stop now. He started it... and he would end it.

A Pidgey standing on a branch caught his eye: the bird attentively stared down at him and his trainer as the two switched terrain to walk on a musty, beaten earth road, which dug even deeper into the woods.

The bird Pokémon narrowed its eyes and chirped, seemingly to provoke the one below. The taunt was more than effective: Poochyena immediately stopped and started snarling in a crescendo as the Pidgey continued to chirp.

"Hm. This can't be good." David spoke, interrupting Poochyena's observations. The boy had stopped several steps ahead of his Pokémon, who was still snarling at the Pidgey, like a warning to stay where it was.

Noticing Poochyena didn't even bark, David turned and called again.

"Poochyena! What are you doing? Come on!"

But the pup Pokémon just took a step forward, approaching the Pidgey in much the same way the bird climbed down a branch to get closer.

"Poochyena!" David called once more, moving towards him this time.

By the time he was next to the Pokémon, the latter was nose to nose (rather, nose to beak) with the Pidgey, each one "snarling" in its own way.

"Eh, made friends already?" He satirized as the Pidgey's purr and Poochyena rumble got louder.

David hesitated for a Pokéball. His hand was already reaching out for the backpack.

"I suppose you two want to fight." David added, stepping back. The two Pokémon exhibited a contented and defying grin, and moved away from each other; enough to create a small battle arena. "Okay then, Poochyena! Go for it! **Bite** him off!"

Poochyena let a young roar out and dashed at the Pidgey, getting ready to sink his teeth into the bird's wings as if to prove he was better.

The Pidgey simply jumped from its branch and dove towards Poochyena at an amazing speed; so much that Poochyena couldn't even react when the two collided and he was sent rolling across the grass and back to David's feet, with the bird flying up again and back to the branch while taunting the two with victorious chants.

Alarmed, David instantly kneeled and helped Poochyena up again – but the Pokémon denied that help by shaking his trainer off, preparing for another blow that could come.

"That Pidgey's pretty good…!" David commented, letting Poochyena go. He was starting to worry about the Pokémon's chances of winning – battling was definitely not his forte, right now. "Wait for the move, Poochyena: then use Sand-Attack."

Poochyena listened carefully to his instructions and nodded afterwards, walking forward again.

As he predicted, Pidgey jumped down and flew at Poochyena again.

David noticed how firm the move was now; as if the Pidgey _knew_ that Poochyena couldn't stand a chance.

Nervously closing his hand tightly, he saw the Pidgey closing in dangerously; why was Poochyena delaying the move so much? Why wasn't he following the plan?

With a defiant look upon him, Poochyena bent his head and perked up his ears, preparing to launch the Sand-Attack.

What happened next wasn't in their plans, however: Poochyena did dodge Pidgey's move, but not thanks to any dirt on the ground – instead, he leapt sideways and, using the traction offered by a patch of dry grass where light came in a clear yellow light, he swiftly jumped at the foe, immediately digging his teeth in the Pokémon's wing.

But this had a drawback neither could have seen coming: with the extra weight and the sudden hit, Pidgey lost control of its flight, and the two were sent rolling into the grass in a chaotic strife for power, leafs and dirt flying everywhere as a result of the struggle.

"Poochyena!" Still struck by the unpredictably fast thinking of Poochyena, David called again for his Pokémon again, following the frenzied sphere of mud and Pokémon as it went down a slope occulted by the thick flora. Somewhere in this mess, he managed to notice Poochyena was in a clear advantage; his teeth hadn't let Pidgey go for one instant since he pulled that move.

But David invariably lost their tracks when they literally rolled into an area of taller grass, disappearing from his sight. He wouldn't dare venturing inside with no Pokémon with him. Not in the Viridian Forest.

_They're taking too long…_ David thought as the forest faded into silence; not even the gentle sound of the wind through the leafs high above had seemed to stop.

Although he hesitated for a moment, the boy gathered up his courage in a long breathe and lounged himself into the taller grass with a PokéBall at hand, should a Pokémon show up and block his path.

But he didn't take long to see he wouldn't need it, for right after stepping into the soaring meadow, the ground escaped his feet and David was sent rolling uncontrollably down a lengthy slope deeper into the woods, his eyes seeing a blurry landscape of dark green and black as he tried to stop the descent.

Friction did that job for him, however. Closing his eyes, he could feel he was coming to a halt, probably thanks to the increasingly thick tufts of grass in his way.

The fall abruptly ended with a blow on his back, which would have knocked him unconscious if it weren't for the backpack, greatly reducing the impact's damage.

With no time to even think, David got up and searched for his Pokémon once more, only to find it in the middle of a shallow pond right by the place he stopped. Poochyena was panting heavily, facing the Pidgey with clenched teeth and leaned head, as if, once more, he was ready to strike a Tackle. The bird was no less tired – its wings were fallen by its side, passing the image that it couldn't even stand up straight anymore.

"Poochyena!" David yelled, having found his partner. "Give up! Come on!"

And again, the Pokémon didn't pay attention to the call, and even dashed towards Pidgey to tackle it.

The bird evidently showed traces of exhaustion, as it was tossed away into the water. Poochyena, however, seemed to have tripped on his own paws, when he was actually giving in to fatigue, unable to continue fighting.

"Damn it!" The boy cursed, jumping into the water in Poochyena's direction, holding a Potion in his hands. "Come on… be strong like you were just now!"

Holding it in his arms, David nervously sprayed the substance on the Pokémon, hoping he would react to the healing item. His hand shook wildly, and the liquid was sprayed all around the wound until it ended. Without a care he threw the empty bottle away, waiting for a reaction.

And it came: his anxiety decreased when Poochyena's ear twitched; and then, the Pokémon blinked, finally showing its weak vivacity. The boy couldn't avoid the smile that crept on his face.

"You were strong… Very strong, Poochyena." The Pokémon simply nodded in agreement. With his partner healed, David's eyes turned to the other Pokémon across the lake, fainted from exhaustion. "We can't let that one stay either… We should take it to the Pokémon Center in Pewter City while we can."

Putting the empty Potion bottle away, his hand grabbed a Poké Ball instead.

"We shouldn't have trouble in capturing it…"

The item flew across the air to reach the Pidgey, turning it into a reddish silhouette that was absorbed by the small ball.

David'd read about it – the ball was supposed to shake a bit, showing the struggle of the captured Pokémon to avoid its capture. A flash in the central circle of the item would show that the capture was successful.

However, none of this happened. Instead, the circle flashed in red immediately, and the ball stood still, waiting for David to retrieve it.

Still a bit surprised, the boy did so, putting it away on the belt.

"Alright, Poochyena; let's keep on going. We gotta cross the forest still today."

The Pokémon nodded again and followed its trainer out of the lake and back into the woods, leaving behind the large body of water.

Not long after they were on the other side of the dense foliage that separated the lagoon from the forest, immense crowds of creatures took over the area. Grass Pokémon, Bug Pokémon and Water Pokémon… even types to be identified. They saw David off; and then went back to their normal life, restoring the natural sounds that composed the forest's background tune.

* * *

The road ahead promised a pleasant journey; taking advantage of the time when people were supposedly at home for the midday meal, the forest's frequently crowded outer ring now stood completely empty of life. The morning's pleasant warmth became a torrid atmosphere, causing the cold memories of the previous nights to attenuate into nothing but a distant memory; so much that David was forced to swap his long sleeved shirt for a short sleeved one, but keeping the jacket.

They hadn't stopped walking for a second since they left the pond, covering most of the exterior area in a very short time. His nerves began to flourish when the deeper areas of the woods approached; a sign, cloaked in the shadows of the overgrown foliage that formed a great wall of vegetation, clearly marked the limit into the heart of the Viridian Forest.

_Enter at own risk._ was the notice written in large, blood-red letters that caught his attention like a scream in his ear, causing him to quiver for various reasons.

Poochyena, on the other hand, seemed oblivious to all of this. Firmly stepping the barren soil that made their path, his ears were like a radar that alerted him to the minimum sound.

To David, the battle refreshed the young Pokémon like a thoroughly cold bath; and they knew enough of coldness to have an opinion.

"I hadn't noticed that sign before…" He remarked, keeping his pace. A memory immediately erased this doubt, though. "We're about to reach the stone, Poochyena… I wonder if it's still here."

This 'stone' was a perfectly round monolith concealed in a musty layer of greenery, hiding it from the distracted passerby's sight. It had been there since he remembered – then again, since his father remembered, for it was him who introduced David to this curious object in the first place. And his father, being a ruin expert, knew quite a bit about ruins and this kind of objects – but nothing about this stone.

Because it was no regular stone, either. Runes were etched in its surface, giving out the feeling that it emanated some sort of mystical power. David felt that when he approached the stone for the first and only time.

And in the course of the years, the stone hadn't changed one bit. There it stood, petrified in time and untouched by the human hand, or any agent of Nature.

Age did not affect its carvings either, as they were actually contrasted even more by the thin grass coating, already attached to the stone's surface.

For the first time in quite some time – since they began walking – David and Poochyena came to a halt to observe the stone once more.

It hadn't lost its supernatural feeling – the two still felt it when the stone was approached.

"I wonder why this stone is even here…" The boy commented, touching the runes with his fingers. The designs were peculiar for having a common characteristic to them all: a ring; rather, an exterior circle that connected to the character's body and a smaller, interior circle common to all of them, with a point in the middle. "Can this even be read…?"

"Yeah, I heard so."

The second voice startled David in such a way that he leapt over the rock and took cover.

"W-Who's there?"

"Whoa, since when are you such a scaredy-cat?" The voice immediately replied before taking a form; the form of a young boy, somewhat younger than David, who poked his head out of a bush, followed by a Turtwig. The black, white and yellow cap, turned around to the back of the head, was David's first clue to immediately recognize him.

"Raul." He simply spoke, sighing in relief before getting up.

"Ahah! What are you doing in the Viridian Forest, man?" He heartily laughed, walking out of the bush completely.

It was Raul indeed; Raul Hailbird, one of David's closest relatives, resident in Pewter City. The boy was always hyperactive, at least in the older boy's opinion – this was reflected in his equally energetic Turtwig, which wouldn't set foot outside a five meter range from its trainer just to show how close they were.

The two didn't see each other a lot – instead, David frequently used the Pokégear to call him, and they would stay and chat about their progress in training for hours.

"Humph. What did you mean, you heard so?"

"Well… you know how papa's been doing some research on Pokémon?" David nodded at the question. "I saw these ones in the computer once, and they were read like normal letters."

"Normal letters?"

Raul groaned and pushed David aside, pointing at the runes.

"See this? It's _Unown_ for 'E'."

"You mean… Unown, the Pokémon?"

"No, I mean Unown the Kanto Champion – of course I mean the Pokémon. But Pokémon use Unown to write, get it?"

David thought about the information for a few moments.

"Makes sense…" Poochyena, however, gave a 'I don't know' made of growls. His eyes, though, seemed to say Write something and I'll believe.

"So!" Raul suddenly piped up, startling his companions. "What'cha doing in the Viridian Forest?"

"That…" He hesitated, choosing the right words and facts out of the long list of reasons that triggered his coming. "I'll explain you on the way to Pewter. Know the way back?"

"Yeah, come on. I just came out here to let Turtwig walk along."

David hummed and followed his cousin as the latter took a path through the bushes with a firm pace. Keeping his promise, David saw himself detailing his ordeal in Viridian City, the theft, the Rocket Grunt… But the story he told was holed like Swiss cheese, as the most important points, such as the ticket he got and the promise he made to himself, were left untold. Raul noticed it, but kept quiet to hear the rest of the story like a young boy marveling itself at an incredible story.

But as the story unfolded in its own way, a low house came into their sight. The green roof was the first thing David used to deduce it was the forest's northern end – a gatehouse leading to Pewter City.

"…and then I just thought I'd capture this little guy and heal him." He finished when the story came towards the end of the battle with Pidgey.

"So you won't keep it?" Raul asked, surprised.

David flinched at the question.

"Erm… I'm not… really a trainer, you know…"

"But you're ten! You SHOULD be a trainer! If you're going to Vermilion City, you should have more Pokémon with you!"

Put that way, the facts seemed to make his cousin's surprise justifiable. Why wouldn't he be a trainer? Was there anything to stop Poochyena from having a partner he could rely on during the battle, aside from David himself?

Hadn't he a passion for the Gym Bagdes? Their look, their shape, the way they shone when kept polished… he would give anything to have one. So why not earn them at last? Why not… challenge the Gym Leaders in Kanto?

"No… I'm not prepared…" He spoke loud, when he was actually answering his own thoughts.

Noticing Raul's sudden confusion, he stuttered when trying to explain his cry.

"I-I mean, I'm not prepared to battle the Gym Leaders."

"Well I am!" The shout would've echoed all over if they weren't outside the gatehouse already – it was still enough to leave David astonished.

"Y-You? The Gym Leaders?" He repeated, not believing it yet. "But… aren't you… too young?"

"Yeah yeah, I know. I'm too young to challenge any Pokémon League, yadayadayada. But I won't challenge the League! I'm challenging Gym Leaders so I can one day challenge the Elite Four themselves!"

His cousin's confidence in its words was remarkable. David could barely think he wasn't ready when his cousin, a couple of years younger, was ready from the start.

"But… how are you going to do that? Your parents don't even…"

David trailed off as Raul lowered his head, obviously bothered by this.

"You aren't thinking of running away, are you?" David sighed when Raul shook his head.

He wasn't an example to follow either; he ran away from home after making the biggest rubbish he could ever do – losing an important note. He was on a quest to retrieve it, but still the guilt of leaving home hadn't faded away.

The next question, though, had to be done.

"Then how are you doing it?"

Little did he know, he was the answer to it.

* * *

"Nice of you to come by our house, David." The young mother said, placing the dishes on the table. David simply smiled at his aunt, taking the backpack off. "How are your parents?"

"Oh, they're… still in the Seafoam Islands. I doubt they're coming back anytime soon. You know how it goes when the exploration site are those caves."

Elizabeth frowned and kept doing her chore.

"Well, I'm sure they're coming back soon. They can't leave their soon behind for much time, can they now?"

"Mom, David's going to Vermilion City! Can I go?" Raul suddenly burst from nowhere.

"Vermilion? That's quite a stretch, honey. Are you sure you can go there?"

Elizabth's disdain for the quest's danger itself was surprising to David.

"I'm taking Poochyena and this Pidgey with me…"

"Oh, yeah! I forgot! We should go to Dad's office and heal that Pidgey!" Raul piped up again, taking the Pokéball from David's hand and running down the stairs at the end of the hallway.

"Are you… sure? I could just go to the Pokémon Center, they…"

"Come on!" Raul's voice was faintly heard from the bottom of the stairs.

"Oh, he doesn't matter, honey." Elizabeth commented after seeing David's uncertainty. "Tony spends most of his time in his office so healing your Pidgey shouldn't be a problem. Oh, and David?" She added just before the boy started walking. "Are you staying for dinner?"

Now she got him. David's weak point when it came to courtesy was being asked to stay and dine at someone else's house. Now was the time when he had to try and make an excuse up. And dinner? It probably wasn't even half past three in the afternoon and she was already thinking up dinner?

"Hum… I really should go…"

"Your Poochyena's completely famished, and I bet your Pidgey is too. They should rest a bit. You too. And going to Vermilion requires a lot of energy!" She winked during the last sentence, leaving David blushing a bit before nodding and walking off to the stairs.

Poochyena, on the other hand, was left behind with Turtwig while Elizabeth went for a can of food and placed it on a dish for the two to share.

* * *

He had been to the Hailbirds' manor for some times. Most of them were visits with his parents, since Viridian Forest was strictly off-limits, as was the Indigo Plateau.

But the house never ceased to impress him.

It was located in the borders of Pewter City, just north of the gym where the Gym Leader, Brock, took challenges from trainers all over for the Boulder Badge. A river surrounded the hill below it, making access to the house restricted and somewhat dangerous for vehicles. Whenever he wished, Tony could close any entrance.

For Raul's father, Tony, or Dr. Anthony Hailbird, as he was called amongst the scientific community, was no less than a genius. The man was incredible – the developments in all things requiring extensive knowledge on Pokémon, even the most important ones, always had his name somewhere, either as a reference, a co-author, or the author of the thesis itself.

The manor he possessed was nothing to scoff at either. David suspected that millions of wires were buried deep below the earth, each and every one of them with a potential use, be it security or simply to scare off a Rattata that dared to cross the line.

And Tony's lab was below that same manor, dug into the hill to avoid occupying the house above. It also helped him to not mix work and house life.

Truthfully, David had never been to that lab. He knew of its existence because Raul could telltale about it for hours straight.

And there he was now, going down each step with uncertainty and some fright, on his own, in that probably huge maze located below.

A faint lamp lit his way down every ten steps in a spiral staircase, giving him the feeling he was going into a dungeon rather than into a normal lab.

But these nerves would wear off quickly with the simple sight of a normal, wooden door, richly decorated with gold and silver to form a Pokéball surface over a couple of tilted test tubes. A seemingly golden plate laid screwed on the door, with the inscription "Dr. Anthony Hailbird" on it.

_That's… anticlimactic…_ He thought as voice became audible from the other side of the door.

"…you want to do that?" A deep voice continued talking. David hadn't gotten the first part of the sentence, but he could still guess.

"I'm sure of it! I'm ready and I can go anywhere I have to! Just give me a chance!" In the silence that followed, David understood what was in question. Raul's departure.

Finally, the older man's voice broke the quietness with a whisper.

"Then is David here?"

"Yeah, upstairs."

"Could you… call him down here?"

"Yeah, sure."

With Raul's steps becoming louder and louder, David began to hesitate about what to do to not seem like he was hearing.

And the best option seemed to be opening the door and simply pretend to be surprised.

"Hum, Raul?" He called in a [i]so[/i] surprised tone as the door was pushed.

"David." Anthony's thick voice suddenly called. A chill went down the boy's spine.

"Y-Yes?"

"May I have a word with you?" He threw a glare at Raul. "Alone?"

"I-I guess." _Stop stuttering!_

Raul got the memo and left as fast as he could, closing the door behind him.

This gave David the first opportunity to finally look up at his uncle: a tall, well-built man, completely bald and with deep, cold eyes, fitting of a researcher marked by work and age. He held Pidgey's Pokéball in the right hand, while the left opened the gabardine's left side for the right one to reach in and take a second Pokéball out.

He stood much higher than David, whereas the boy, in his innocent ten years of life, only reached the man's chest.

"Please, sit down." The man instructed, pointing at a seat right next to the door. "There are matters that I feel we must discuss."

David was completely lost by now, but he couldn't do anything else other than pull the chair and sit on it while Tony intently gazed upon the two items in his hand.

Something was up. Something had been said there.

_Something that would permanently change the course of David's life._

* * *

**13 days remaining!**

* * *

**Before going, I'm going to leave another piece of artwork, this time for Prof. Hailbird:**

**.net/fs70/i/2010/008/c/3/Dr_Anthony_Hailbird_Fullbody_by_**


	5. It's A Lonely Gray Road

**Cookie for whoever guesses who that guy with the weapon was. xD**

* * *

**It's a lonely, gray road…**

_Outskirts of Pewter City, Evening_

* * *

An eerie atmosphere took over the confined laboratory when David noticed there was something floating behind his uncle whenever he took a step. It had the appearance of a hollow shell, with two lines for eyes, crossing the pair of globes on its top. The wings on its back, combined with the white aureole _floating_ atop its head, were oddly unfitting for the creature itself, giving an angelic look to a monster with such faded colors and rather uncanny features. It remained immobile, however; as if it were simply a statue, incapable of moving any member of its body.

Then his eyes suddenly met his uncle's. Their clear, blue color deeply contrasted with the man's face, worn out from its age and by extension, hard work throughout the man's life. They were strangely reassuring, as if something in them told David that, no matter what was about to be discussed, it was no deadly subject – but nothing to mock either.

The Pidgey he captured earlier was still resting in its Pokéball, after Raul irrefutably took the item from David's hand and ran down the stairs to deliver it to his father.

And there it was, still with the other Pokéball that seemed to have magically appeared from the inside of his uncle's gabardine.

"David…" Anthony finally spoke, hesitantly choosing his words. "What are you doing here? Where are your parents?"

David discreetly gulped after hearing such a simple question.

"They're at the Seafoam Islands… they've been there since the month began."

"The Seafoams?" The man repeated, sounding surprised. David quickly nodded. "And you?"

"I… I was on my way to…" Anthony's head curiously tilted forward, his eyes seemingly piercing David's mind like an arrow. "I was going to Vermilion…"

"Alone?" David nodded once again. "Is that not dangerous? You were going alone with a Poochyena and a Pidgey… Did your parents consent?"

There. Trapped like a mouse.

He could lie by saying he had phoned them… but the consequences were clearly worse than those after telling the truth.

"They don't know." He firmly answered, getting up. "I was going on my own."

Anthony followed his movement with his head, his eyes locked on the Pokégear on the backpack's strap.

"Until Raul bumped into you in the Viridian Forest." The professor continued.

"Yes." David sighed, sitting again. "He says he wants to battle Gym Leaders and win Gym Badges… but he's just too young for it…"

"My thoughts exactly." The man agreed. "But tell me, David. Why were you going to Vermilion? Certainly, you must have a very good reason for it…"

David bit his lip in hesitation.

"You'll tell my parents… won't you?"

"It depends." His reply came immediately, in a much softer tone. "If you give a reason good enough to not tell… then maybe we can arrange something."

The boy didn't notice, but his uncle trustingly winked at him.

It was a clear conflict going on inside David. His uncle was a credited professor, awarded multiple times for incredible discoveries… if there was someone who knew what the correct thing to do was, it was him.

But then, how would he explain such unexplainable events like the theft, the fact was frosted into a statue of ice, the fact there was such an invitation behind the entire story…? He was a ten year old, for Mew's sake. What point was there when such a fertile imagination could have triggered everything?

"You'll find this hard to believe, but…" David started, supporting his head with his hands. "There's something I have to pick up in Vermilion's docks… it's a… package…"

Anthony sat back and crossed his legs, evidently interested.

"What kind of package?"

"I have no idea. Two days ago, a letter arrived at our house… so I opened it. I thought it wouldn't do anything bad if I did… it turned out to be an invitation. I don't know to who it was exactly, because it only said '_The Lawride_". It was probably for my dad…"

"So you're saying this letter is the reason why you're going to Vermilion?"

"No… I wasn't supposed to go… Poochyena didn't agree on it… and I felt like I shouldn't either. But then… on that same night… there was a noise downstairs… I went to check what was going on… and there was this man in black, with a big, red 'R' on his chest, with a Dewgong. They attacked us, and got us frozen solid."

Anthony frowned at the course of events, most likely imagining how powerful the attack should have been to have such an effect.

"When I got loose from the ice, the letter wasn't there anymore…"

"And you think that man took it?"

David nodded and continued.

"When I went to the Pokémon Center, they told me he was from Team Rocket, and that they were stealing people all over Viridian." David remembered the running he had to do just to reach the center in time, with Poochyena in his arms.

Anthony went silent for a moment, gazing at a few boxes at the end of the laboratory.

"Going to Vermilion alone isn't a good solution, David. You should've told your parents when you had the time." Anthony got up and placed a hand on his nephew's shoulder, his face showing a brim of light for the first time. "You're young. Too young to fight such a cr-…path. You must first train… And only through training of your mind and body can you reach the level you need to defeat that man after you find him."

"But…"

"No. I know you don't just want to receive the package; you also want to find the man and take him into jail." Anthony suddenly discontinued. "You and Poochyena might be strong… but you're not strong enough."

The excitement he felt when he entered the house suddenly vanished into shame – his watch now rested upon the wooden floor, while his mind laid occupied with thoughts of how bad the journey could've turned out if he kept going.

"**DAVID! DAD!**" Raul's voice abruptly interrupted his thoughts and made him and his uncle leap backwards, watching as the boy ran down the stairs and stormed into the lab. "**HELP US! WE'RE BEIN' ROBBED!**"

"_The kid's down there, **GET HIM**_!" Another voice called from above, followed by several footsteps in a running pace. Anthony's mouth opened in shock.

"Where are your Pokémon?" Raul's face suddenly turned red.

"They took them! They have Poochyena and Turtwig!" He cried out, running to his father's arms.

"**What?**"

The professor sat Rau on a chair and ran to the back of the laboratory, throwing boxes all over the place to reach a long, silver-plated one.

"Take care of your cousin! I'll close the door, and I don't want you to open it!" He screamed to David, releasing a Shedinja from the Pokéball. "DON'T… OPEN… IT!"

And with that, he shut the door with a loud bang – the lock was heard right after. The last thing the two cousins heard was their relative's steps up the stairs… nothing else. As if everything had stopped.

As if his simple presence upstairs was the needed to soothe the rebellion.

Raul had curiously calmed down, paying with an item on the table by rolling it from one hand to the other – but his face was still colored like a ruby, his eyes wet from the tears.

David began walking in circles, brushing his hair each time he went past a container-like machine connected to a few computers.

His uncle had taken Pidgey's Pokéball. And if Poochyena was also up there…

"Ugh." He simply didn't want to think about it.

Though, there had to be something they could do… there had to be something in that lab they could use.

Approaching the messy pile of boxes his uncle had thrown everywhere, he noticed there was a few which contained Pokéballs of all kinds. Common, Great, Ultra… even some kinds he had never seen before.

"Hey, Raul, look at this!" He called, pointing at the open box. His cousin eagerly jumped from the chair and ran to David's side, gasping in amaze upon seeing the collection of Pokéballs.

"Wow… do they have any Pokémon?"

"Hm…" David picked one up and looked at the top half. It was apparently empty. "Nope… Nope…" Pokéball by Pokéball, his hope was starting to falter. All of the Pokéballs he had seen were empty…

That is, until the very last one was reached, just against a corner in the bottom of the box.

"Hey, this one has a Pokémon!" He exclaimed, taking the item to Raul's eyelevel.

"Cool… Which one's it?"

David hummed and looked at the Pokémon inside from every side.

"I don't quite know… I've never seen this one…"

"Look, there's another one here…" Raul pointed out a minimized Pokéball just below the desk, hidden from sight. Picking it up and maximizing it, Raul tried to identify the Pokémon inside, but to no avail.

"Let me see that…" David snatched the Pokéball and took a good look at it; but just like his cousin, he couldn't even recognize the Pokémon's type.

"It's odd… you think your dad's importing Pokémon?"

Raul shook his head, turning to the item again. Curiosity daunted him to release the Pokémon and see for himself.

David dodged the attempt to steal the Pokéball, but Raul didn't give up – he lounged at his cousin with a slam, barely touching the hand with the supposedly stranger Pokémon.

Instead, the other Pokéball fell from his hand, rolling to the younger cousin's feet.

"Don't!" David called just as Raul picked the Pokéball up. "You don't know what kind of Pokémon's in there! It could be an Onix, it could be anything!" He spoke like he knew of a lot of types, when truthfully, he knew very few; maybe the first few pages of the Pokédex and some that were much more ahead.

"I wanna be a professional trainer! I should be able to tame any Pokémon!"

"Raul, don't open that…"

"You can't tell me what to do!" Raul suddenly hollered, maximizing the Pokéball before throwing it in the air.

The object opened in a blinding flare that spread across the lab, perhaps even to the outside, to terminate in a very weak, crimson beam that materialized a Pokémon as it hit the ground.

Just as it was finished, the Pokéball flew back to the young boy's hand. He stood there, amazed by the kind of Pokémon that had just appeared before him.

Raul was quite a scholar, actually – what would one expect from the son of such a notorious figure as Dr. Anthony Hailbird?

Since his childhood, Raul read dozens, hundreds of books regarding the species cataloged by the Champion runner-up, Red, in the past two years. This, of course, included several others cataloged not by Red, but by Blue, the current Kanto Champion, many of which from foreign regions, such as the Sinnoh region – Raul's one and only dream was achieve the Champion title by competing in the Sinnoh League, said to be the toughest of all time. For that, of course, he knew he had to be thoroughly stronger; which is why he also wanted the Kanto Champion title, to acquire knowledge rivaling that of the current title holder.

His Turtwig was an example of how this dream could become a reality – his main reminder of what his goal was.

The specimen that had just materialized in front of him was no exception. It was a common one, though not very preferred, as it lived in the shadow of its predecessor: Raichu.

The Pokémon stretched itself from tail to ears, its cheeks flickering in small sparks. It was clearly free of excessive power – Raul had read that, when overloaded, Raichus tend to be much more violent, so they simply discharge that electricity on themselves.

"A… a Raichu…?"

"You IDIOT!" David roared all of a sudden, hearing the tumult that had just settled upstairs. "YOU GOT US BUSTED!"

"W-What?"

He blocked his mouth with a hand, silencing the boy. Indeed, there were steps being heard above – and they weren't calm.

"Now we're done for! And I don't even have my backpack, my Pokégear… nothing!" His hands began to tremble, along with his legs and his confidence. "I don't even HAVE a Pokémon!"

"**DOWN HERE! GET'EM!**" The voice's proximity to the door sent a chill down the two cousin's spines. David froze in his place.

"What are we going to do? How are we getting out of this one?"

"DAVID! SNAP OUT OF IT!" Raul suddenly yelled, putting a hand on his cousin's shoulder.

"**On my command!**" A voice hollered from the outside. "**NOW**!"

…

…

**KABOOM**! A massive explosion blasted the shatterproof door into pieces, releasing a cloud of thick smoke into the air as the metallic shards flew in all directions. David and Raul cowered by their Pokémon, shielding their eyes from the rubble.

"**NOW GET'EM!**"

"Don't'cha try!" Raul defiantly yelled as he got up, a good amount of dust falling down his back. "Raichu! Use **Thunderbolt** on'em!"

The mouse Pokémon jumped ahead and instantly charged a massive Thunderbolt which was unleashed over the invaders, right through the dust cloud. David retreated at the move's sheer power, seemingly decimating anything in its path. Flashes from the thunders flooded the laboratory – David quickly threw himself down again, but Raul didn't even wince. Raichu stood against the burglars, whose silhouettes crawled up the walls behind. Its cheeks were sparkling with energy, showing how eager it was to strike another blow.

"Okay then, Raichu! Use **Thunder Wave** to keep them in place!" Raul hollered the second order as he pointed at the moving figures again.

"Raaaaaaaaii…" The air around Raichu became distorted before a wave flew into the fog, possibly hitting the foes.

"Good shot! Now use **Th**-…"

"Not so fast, kid!" A voice suddenly called from rising figure beyond the cloud.

"What?"

"Thunder Wave must have missed…" David commented in awe.

"Dugtrio! Take that rat down with **Earthquake**!"

"Earthquake?"

They couldn't see them – but three moles were preparing to create an earthquake; and all hell broke loose.

"Raichu!" Raul and David shrieked in terror, grabbing whatever they could as a shockwave crawled across the floor and exploded in a fiery rage under the Pokémon's feet, tossing it against the ceiling. The boxes, filled with Pokéballs, were thrown in all directions, and some probably even destroyed from the blast; the desks, computers and paperwork were moved, broken and ripped, ruining most of the work thus far.

"This looks bad!" David cried as the shockwaves dissipated. "Electric moves won't do any good!"

"Keep'em quiet with **Sand Tomb**!"

The ground shook once more, but a wave of sand followed as well, covering the two boys and the Raichu's feet; the sand then began flowing upwards, concealing them inside a sand cloak.

"Stop this…!" The youngest whined, grabbing the thick layer of sand that now threatened to cover his head.

"Suffocate! Learn to NOT mess with us!"

"David!" Raul called, unable to see where his cousin was. "Your Pokémon!"

David could still see his relative – and so he saw him getting completely shrouded, mummified alive.

But hesitation still took over him. It wasn't because he was afraid of releasing it, it was because he was afraid that he couldn't control it.

He looked one last time at the Pokéball.

"It's now or never."

All he could do was let the Pokéball fall to the floor, releasing the Pokémon – his hand was immobilized by the sand.

The Pokémon materialized alright – it did so by the Raichu's powerless statue, and had nearly the same color tone the other Pokémon did. It was an otter, not much shorter than David himself. However, two tails spread apart where a single one should be, along with two marks on its back and an indent on the blue fins that made their way up the creature's arm.

It was obviously a Water-Type, but David still hesitated about its abilities, its skills – and his own.

"Use **Water Gun**!" David ordered just before he was completely covered in sand.

"Do you really believe that thing is going to save you?" The evildoer mocked at the Pokémon, since David was probably unable to hear anything.

But the Pokémon didn't even seem affected: it exhibited a boastful grin and leaped backwards, launching a strong water move at the three to clean the sand away in the blink of an eye.

"Bah! You don't scare us with such an insignificant Water Gun! You're just an immature, unevolved Pokémon!" The man showed his true face now that the dust cloud had settled, and the man's clothes shocked David for some reason: the same 'R' was imprinted in the man's chest, but his clothes were fairly different, and no barrette covered his spiky hair, revealing his arrogant look on his eyes. A group of six other grunts followed right behind him, each of them looking like clones of one another.

"You! You're with Team Rocket!"

"Another kid who knows us. I should be flatte-…"

"You're the same burglars who broke into my house yesterday…" David discontinued, clenching his fists in anger. "You're the ones who stole the letter…"

"What's the kid talking about?" The man asked to another grunt, but the grunt simply shrugged.

"AND YOU WILL BE THE ONE TO GIVE IT BACK!" The boy suddenly burst into tears, furiously pointing at the burglars. "USE **AQUA JET**!"

The Pokémon before him raised its arms with a growl, just before exploding in a blast of water that raged towards the Dugtrio.

"U-Use D-Dig!" The grunt ordered; but too late, for the jet's speed was such that not even the foe had a chance to bury underground and dodge the hit. "W-What is that t-thing?"

"Bui!" The Pokémon taunted as it jumped backwards from the rebound.

"FINISH THEM! USE **AQUA JET** AGAIN!"

"Raichu! Thunderbolt!" Raul simultaneously ordered as Raichu leapt forward and discharged every bit of its power into the other Pokémon's move.

"B-But… The kid's attacking his teammate!" One of the grunts burst in laughs, seeing electricity surround David's Pokémon.

"It won't do a thing to it!" David yelled out. "My Pokémon doesn't touch the water… it just spins itself and its two tails fast enough to create a drill both back and forward!"

"Powered up sufficiently, it can blast away with anything!" Raul continued.

"Have a taste of our **ThunderJet**!"

"W-What?" The leader gasped in disbelief as the Pokémon plunged into their own, creating an explosion of water and electricity that immediately floored their team.

David's Pokémon simply bounced back once more, not even scratched.

"I… I can't believe it…! These two kids…!"

"Boss! We gotta get outta here, the cops're comin'!" One of the grunts nervously warned, running down the stairs.

"Retreat at once!" The leader commanded – the grunts disappeared at the sound of the command, but their boss stayed behind for a moment. "Remember me! For I shall not forget you!" And with that, a click was heard and he disappeared in the midst of a cloud of gas.

David just barely dodged a flying shuriken that ended up pricked into the pillar behind him.

"Who was that man?" Raul asked, getting up to meet Raichu.

"Team Rocket." David replied, closely staring at the weapon before putting it away. "That's all I need to know."

"Rai!" Raul's Pokémon joyfully cried as the boy petted him on the head.

David's watched, somewhat envious; at the same time, though, it seemed to be holding itself back, trying to avoid wanting the same treatment.

"You." The older boy spoke, approaching the Pokémon, who followed him with his eyes as he kneed. "Thanks."

He stretched his hand to the backpack and took an item out, holding it out for the Pokémon.

"For your help." He spoke, showing the Sitrus Berry. "You're one brave guy."

The Pokémon looked at the berry for a moment, slowly taking it with a smile.

"We have to find our Pokémon and your dad now." The boy said, getting up.

"That's right! Dad!" Raul yelled before running up the stairs, followed by Raichu.

David and the Pokémon followed suit.

Raul couldn't believe his eyes when the two cousins stopped immediately at the top of the stairs.

"What a mess…" David commented, carefully approaching the door – whatever was left of it. Outside, an immense crowd watched the house, crumbling into pieces on the outside.

Looking to the right, he could see the house's living room, completely torn apart: papers were burning everywhere, along with couches and anything made of wood.

"Put the fire out." David ordered, and his Pokémon obeyed, immediately firing jets of water at the flames that threatened to bring the house down.

"But… where's my father…?" The younger cousin asked, almost in tears.

"Check upstairs. The Rockets are gone, don't worry."

"Bui bui!" His Pokémon suddenly called, pointing at a pile of rubble in the corner.

"You found something?" David responded, running towards the mound. "Give me a help pushing these."

The Pokémon consented and the two started grabbing the chunks of wood and iron, throwing them away afterwards.

They didn't need to dig very far to find a human hand, then an arm, then a body, covered in a heavily ragged gabardine.

"Raul!"

"Dad!" Raul suddenly called, throwing himself at the pile to throw the debris away as well. Raichu joined him right after; Anthony quickly came into sight, his Shedinja lying between the debris right by him.

"The Shedinja must have endured the hit." David commented, picking up a small, red bracelet broken into half.

"Dad! Wake up!"

"Water Gun." The boy commanded, pointing at the man's face, but moving his hand so as to slow the move down.

The Pokémon understood it and softly showered Anthony, just enough to make him come to his senses.

It hadn't finished yet when something barked from behind David, suddenly jumping onto his back and licking his face in excitement; the boy allowed it, for he knew very well who it was.

"Poochyena! You're safe!" He cheerfully shouted, holding the small hyena Pokémon in his arms.

And once again, the other Pokémon turned its head his way, watching the two celebrate their meeting again. It looked down, but quickly recomposed itself and turned away, resuming the jet of water.

"It's okay, you can stop now." Raul asked, holding his father's head. The man blinked a few times, struggling for breath while coughing violently. "Are you okay, dad?"

"I will be… fine…" His eyes were still unused to the light as he spoke. With a weak sight still, he turned to his son with surprise marking his face. "How did… you… Team Rocket…?"

Raul eagerly smiled.

"Raichu and that Pokémon helped us. We totally kicked those Grunts' ass!"

"Raichu and…" Feeling slightly better, Anthony tried to get up on his own, but fell back on Raul's hands again. With no choice but to move only his head, he took a close look around – first at Raichu, then at the Pokémon standing in front of him.

A smile somehow came to his face.

"Foz… It would seem… you found a trainer…" He slowly spoke, turning to Raul afterwards. "How did you… tame… him…?"

"Tame?" Raul repeated, looking at the Pokémon next to his father. "You mean Raichu, right?"

"No…" Anthony answered, raising a trembling hand and pointing at David's Pokémon with difficulty. "Him."

"He… He was with David…"

"David, you say…?" Anthony repeated, relaxing back. "So David… tamed... him…"

"Dad, what is he…? I didn't know, and neither did-…"

"A Buizel."

Raul went silent for a moment, digesting the answer.

"A… Buizel?"

"Aquatic mammalian beings that live in rivers and lakes…" Anthony explained, closing his eyes. "This particular one was found off the occidental European coast… he was causing trouble… to the people there…"

"Then that's why he doesn't have these bits in his fins…" David commented, placing Poochyena on the floor to knee next to the Buizel.

"David…" Anthony spoke, reaching out for the inside of his poor gabardine. "I forgot to… give you your Pokémon back…" He pulled his hand out, revealing the Pokéball with Pidgey inside. "If you were capable of taming Foz and running off with those grunts… Then I believe you are capable of anything."

His voice was brimming with confidence, even as he tried to get up once more – this time, successfully – to place a hand on the Buizel's shoulder.

"But you must stay… I haven't… concluded my research… on you."

The Buizel gasped, staring open-mouthed into the old researcher's eyes, searching for any truth: desire for him to stay was the only truth he found.

"Sorry… Foz." David then apologized, calling its attention. "It's your name, right? Foz?"

The Pokémon looked down and nodded – it was clearly struck from acknowledging this.

"Bui…"

"Look. Why don't I send you over to David once I'm finished studying you?" Anthony proposed, speaking with honesty.

"That's a great idea, Foz! Would you like to come and stay with us?" David pointed at him, and then at Poochyena, who happily barked in sign of acceptance.

Foz's sight didn't leave the burning, wooden floor. He sobbed, nodding again.

"David… Knowing the way you and Raul managed to defeat those grunts… I have decided not to tell your parents about your quest." David would have celebrated as Anthony spoke such words if he didn't know his situation. "It is a legitimate one. I have seen that with my own eyes, today."

"Thank you for…" The boy paused, choosing his words. "…understanding my situation, uncle."

Anthony nodded and turned to Raul.

"And you… the way you handled that Raichu, even though it was an evolved Pokémon…" He paused just like David, searching for the right way of confessing. "Son… I'm proud of you." And they hugged.

But it was no quick hug, from a friend to a friend, or professor to student. It was an earnest, caring hug from father to son: one that, in David's way of viewing things, seemed to be long missed. Raul's head rested on his father's hurt shoulder, uttering compassionate words that brought a tear to the older man's eyes.

"Raul…" Anthony spoke once more, letting go of his son to stare directly into his eyes. "You are free to go with David. Although you are too young to compete in the Pokémon League… Your will is strong. You will conquer the Gyms of Kanto… and challenge the Elite Four when you are older!" He proudly announced, taking two Pokéballs from inside his jacket. With one of them, he called Shedinja back. The other one, he handed it to Raul. "This is your Turtwig… I called him back before the Grunts saw him. Call the Raichu back as well. While it helped you, you must understand it is in the same condition Foz is. It must stay so I can research further."

Raul heard and consented, calling the Raichu back to accept his old Pokémon back.

"Raul, David… go and follow your dreams and desires!"

"But what about you…? And the house? And mom! Where is she?"

"Your mom escaped with Poochyena by her side. She must be outside, waiting for me…" Anthony explained, getting up with cost. "I will be fine… the people of Pewter will help us recover now."

"Are you sure, dad?"

Anthony looked down and smiled.

"I am. Raul, you must chase your dreams… Go, and pursue them! You are smart! You can learn on yourself! You can… because I know it! You are my son! And you will be great!" The man proudly wished out loud, hands on his son's shoulders. "Go… and win!"

Raul's eyes shone with pride and joy; he turned to David with a confident smile.

"David! Let's go! I want to challenge the Pewter Gym Leader… right now!"

His cousin looked down at Foz, and then at Poochyena, nodding at the latter before turning to the Buizel.

"We'll see each other again. I promise." He said before petting him on the head and getting up, ready to move out. "Then let's go! If you're coming with me, you can't slack off… I got a schedule to follow!"

The younger boy snickered and started walking; but just as he was by David, he began running towards the door.

"We're off on the right foot it seems." David commented before running as well, followed by an eager Poochyena, as the three dashed into the rising sun outside.

Hardly did they know, something big was coming…

It was the beginning of a new day…

…and the beginning of an entirely new journey.

* * *

**12 days remaining!**


	6. And If You Had a Bad Day

**And if you had a bad day…**

_Northern Route 2, Morning_

* * *

"Wrap it up with Grass Knot, Turtwig!"

The tiny Pokémon followed his master's command, focusing its mind on the ground; vines suddenly crept from within the earth, trapping and swinging the enemy Rattata from its feet with relative ease.

"And now, Tackle!"

And once more, the Pokémon dashed towards another foe right by him, colliding with the Metapod hard enough to blow it away.

"Alright, let's take a break!"

"Seems like Raul's taking his training seriously, Poochyena." David commented from within a tree's cool shadow.

Poochyena nodded and rested his head on his trainer's legs, preparing to fall asleep.

"I just wonder… if they were the same people…" The boy added, examining the shuriken he had collected. "They said they didn't know…"

"Phew…! That was a tough go!" His cousin suddenly said, sitting down with a small bottle of water. "At this rate, we'll be ready to battle Brock in no time!"

"Hum, yeah." David simply replied with his line of thought interrupted. "Sorry, I have to go for a while. Good luck on your battle, we'll meet back at the Center."

"Okay then, I'll just… keep battling." Raul watched his cousin get up and leave towards the city again before leaping back on his feet. "Break's up, Turtwig! Time to train!"

Poochyena, still under the shadow, couldn't ask for something more comfort than that little mound of leaves.

* * *

David, on the other hand, couldn't take his eyes off the weapon.

_Why… why did they go and attack me…?_ He thought, recalling the events from the previous days. _Am I just unlucky? Or is there something so important in that package that they'll kill for it?_

He was about to reach the Hailbird's manor again; for some reason, he felt he had to go there again, even though there were construction workers repairing it.

He was impelled to go there, so to say. The speed at which the memories of the previous night had faded away from his and Raul's conversations seemed impossible, especially when his cousin's house was nearly torn apart by the force of the earthquake.

Even the fact that they had been trapped in tombs of sand until Foz saved them – not even that had disappeared from his mind. Not even the Buizel himself.

_Maybe I'm just exaggerating about this…_ He thought, turning away from the house and back towards the town.

Doubts came to his mind once more as he crossed the thin bridge of stone. They questioned his journey, just like his uncle had the night before. He wasn't sure about whether he should go on or not, especially after what had happened. The weapon the grunt left him was a death threat for sure; and he didn't know what to expect around the corner, nor if next time he'd be lucky enough to find prized Pokémon like last time.

But something kept him moving. He knew what it was, but he knew he didn't have the quality for it.

The answer was standing right in front of him: the Gym.

"How can I even want to do this… I don't even know how to properly battle…" He hummed, lowering his head with a depressed look.

"Tsc. You don't know how to battle?" A voice suddenly spoke at his side, startling the boy out of his trance. "What kind of trainer ARE you then?"

A boy stood there with his hands in his pockets, staring at David with a wide, confident grin. His clothes seemed as if he belonged to some kind of college, a dark blue uniform made of only a jacket, a red shirt, and matching jeans. Even his shoes were classy ones, completely inadequate for travelling; contrasting the Pokéball on both his silver pendant and his belt, most likely indicating a trainer. Strangely enough, however, his posture was anything but a private school student's, especially judging from his messy, chestnut hair, matching perfectly with his equally colored eyes, looking into David's own in a relaxed gaze.

"You're David, aren't you?" The boy continued, walking around him in circles. "You're nothing special… unlike the boy who scared off the Rockets from Dr. Hailbird's lab."

"What…?"

"You know, the guy who defeated the grunts." He continued, stopping to turn towards the destroyed manor. "Well, your description matched. Guess I'll have to look for the guy elsewhere."

David was completely lost by now. So he was looking for him, and he couldn't be it for not looking… powerful?

"Why do you even want to find him?"

The boy stopped on his tracks, turning back only his head.

"Isn't that obvious?" He remarked, pulling the Pokéball from his belt. "I'm gonna challenge David Lawride to a battle. And if I win… I'll be known for that."

"Known…?"

"That's right, kid. And if you see the guy…" He paused to put the Pokéball back in place, resuming his walk back to the city. "Tell him Allan Sharas is waiting."

_Allan… Sharas…?_ He mentally repeated, watching the boy walk away.

"David!" Raul's voice was suddenly heard coming from south. The boy came into view shortly after, followed by his Turtwig and Poochyena. "Finally found you!"

But his cousin didn't reply; instead, he kept staring blankly into the distance, his eyes still locked on Allan's path.

"Hey! Snap out of it!" Raul called again, waving his hand and snapping his fingers in front of his eyes. "Come on, I gotta show you something!"

Raul reached out for his pocket and took out a small, green stone with a leaf seemingly trapped inside it, beautifully glowing underneath the sun.

This same glow finally caught David's attention, who slowly turned to the stone and absentmindedly inspected it.

"It's… shiny…"

"I know, right?" Raul snatched it and placed it in his pocket again. "You think it's worth anything at the Mart? I really need to gear up for the battle!"

"Gear up?..." He repeated, finally realizing what had just happened. "Wait, you're going to battle already?"

"Well… yeah! Turtwig's more than ready to fight, and I'm confident he'll handle anything Brock throws at us!"

"Wow… that's a lot of confidence there."

"I know… but hey, I got the type advantage here. Turtwig's a Grass-type, and Brock will only use Rock-type. I got the whole strategy figured out." Raul proudly answered, starting to walk towards the shop building. "I heard he uses an Onix, and they're really tough guys."

"Onix…" David repeated again, remembering the Rock-type Pokémon he saw on television three years before. It was a wicked battle between Bruno and Agatha, two former Elite Four members, the toughest of all. "They aren't just tough… they're powerful, too."

"I read in one of dad's books that they use an attack called Bide. They charge up, and BANG! They knock your Pokémon out, just like that!" Raul explained out of excitement, but David only raised an eyebrow at the description.

"And how do you know that Turtwig will take the blow?"

"Well, he probably won't." David gasped at Raul's instant reply, surprised to hear so.

"Then how…"

"And he won't need to." Raul interrupted with a smug look in his face. "Turtwig's really fast, and Onix won't stand a chance. Turtwig will just evade the move!"

Raul's strategy seemed so flawed to his cousin that he and Poochyena looked down at Turtwig and frowned.

"That strategy has more holes than Swiss cheese." David commented, entering the Mart. "Why do you say that? I actually battled people, you know?"

"Yeah. You battled Metapods, Kakunas, Caterpies and Weedles. Now I'd like to see you battle an actual Butterfree!" His cousin exclaimed in the middle of the shop, attracting everyone's attention.

The two quieted down and stood still for a moment, waiting for the pressure to fade away before crawling up to the counter.

"Hum… how much is this stone worth…?" Raul timidly asked, searching for the green rock.

"A stone?" The clerk repeated in indignation. "How do you want me to sell a ro-…"

The man immediately stopped talking when the boy showed a glowing stone in his hand.

"I-I mean, of course we can make a deal." He stuttered, opening his eyes widely. "That one stone is worth a thousand and fifty dollars. How does that sound?"

"A thousand and fifty?" Raul imagined the number; it was quite the amount of money, especially for his allowance, and even for his pocket.

"That doesn't really seem like much of a big deal." David replied instead, frowning.

The clerk almost choked on his own upon hearing this.

"W-what?"

"You want the stone! You're stuttering all around, and you're offering a kid a thousand and fifty dollars for an obviously precious item!" David suddenly scolded, picking the stone up and examining it again.

His words left the man speechless.

"Come on, you know what this is! So tell him!"

"It's…"

"It's a Leaf Stone, idiot." Someone replied in the clerk's place.

"That voice…" David raised his eyes to the shelves in the corner of the shop. It was the boy from before. "Allan."

"Tsc. And you're the big guy who threw Team Rocket down?" The other boy came over to them, circling David to study him again. "I have to admit, you got one point up in my consideration after that speech."

"What do you want?"

"I was just… confirming it was you." Allan replied, picking the stone up and throwing it to the clerk's hands. "Pay him the full two thousand and a hundred or you'll have trouble, pal."

David and Raul watched him leave the store without another word, and before they knew it, the money was being presented to them.

"Wow… You know that guy?"

"Humph… I'm not sure if I'd rather not even know."

Already outside, Raul took his backpack off to check the items he bought. They were in front of the Pewter Gym, already prepared to fight Brock.

"A handful of Potions…?" David asked in surprise, seeing the bag's content.

"Well, yeah. I didn't spend all the money." Raul replied, opening the doors. "Besides, the guy didn't have anything else for sale, except for some Pokéballs and Repels. I bet the most interesting item in his entire store's that Leaf Stone we had. Say, that guy really knew some things about the item, didn't he?"

"That's what bothers me." David replied, going in as well. "He said he wanted to battle David Lawride… What if he really decides to battle me?"

Raul only shrugged.

"You don't have a choice. You'll fight him." He added before turning to the attendee. "One entry for the Gym match. My name's Raul."

"Yes, sir." She replied, quickly typing some things on a laptop and printing it. The ticket was handed right after. "Here you go, you are contestant number 19, Block A. The preliminary phase is about to start, so you're just in time. Good luck!"

Raul thanked and walked away with David, stopping where the hall forked into a stairway and a door.

"I'll just be upstairs watching you then." David said, walking up the stairs with Poochyena behind. "Remember to not jump at him just like that."

"And when did I do that?"

"When we battled the grunts. You ordered Raichu to attack before you could even know what was coming."

"Oh come on. It was different!"

"Whatever. Just make sure you focus." David finished, disappearing behind the staircase.

Raul turned forward and took a deep breath; it was time to prove what he was worth.

"Come on, Turtwig! Let's beat Brock!" The Pokémon chirped happily in agreement, and the two ran into the main arena, preparing for the battle to come.

* * *

David was actually stunned with what he saw on the other side of the observation deck.

An immense crowd surrounded a rather small arena where a referee prepared to announce the battles.

But what surprised him the most was to see a gang of Pokémon and a boy somewhat older than him standing and staring at the arena with their arms crossed. They were an Onix, a Graveler and a Geodude; the boy was Brock himself!

"Shouldn't you be on the arena?" David asked, sitting on a bench not far from the window and the Gym Leader.

But the latter only grunted something incomprehensible and kept staring down, watching the empty battlefield.

"Won't you even go there and battle?"

"Look, kid, it doesn't work that way here." He harshly answered, turning to David. His apparently closed eyes somewhat surprised the boy at first, but he didn't flinch; instead, he kept looking into his eyes, until the Gym Leader turned around again, ignoring him completely.

"_A-Block preliminary round is about to start._" The referee was heard announcing.

"That's Raul!" David exclaimed, running up to the window. Indeed, Raul was already on one of the sides of the arena, Turtwig standing next to him. "Hm… but he only has one Pokémon… he won't handle the rest…"

"He won't need to." Brock was surprisingly heard answering. "The preliminary round is a free-for-all battle. Each trainer is allowed to use one Pokémon. The last Pokémon standing will be the winner."

"A free-for-all?" David quietly repeated in shock, realizing that the other trainers in the arena had recalled their other Pokémon, leaving behind one. "That really doesn't sound easier…"

"_Trainers! Abandon the arena!_" The trainers quickly jumped out of the arena, allowing some more space for the Pokémon, even though those on the field weren't all that bulky. David could see a handful of Geodudes and Gravelers, but there were Caterpies and Kakunas for the most part.

"That is how things go in my Gym. A free-for-all will decide who is the toughest of each block." The Gym Leader continued. "The winner of each block will face each other in the semi-final… and the one who rises victorious will face me."

David listened to the explanation and turned to the arena again.

"I see. _Raul doesn't stand a chance…_" He sighed, crossing his arms like the boy beside him.

"_Fight!_" The bell rang loudly and chaos took over the boxing arena, where the Geodudes and Gravelers seemed to pair up to try and throw the Caterpies out first.

"What the…?" Raul gasped as he searched for Turtwig in the middle of the confusion. He couldn't shout until he found his Pokémon, especially because the trainers around him seemed much older and easily covered the sound of his voice.

The small Pokémon finally emerged from within the cloud of dust and flying insects, running between the arms of a Graveler and evading the grasp of a Geodude.

"Don't just run away! You'll be an easy target!" Raul finally yelled out; but it was no use.

The number of Bug Catchers around him quickly decreased; in a split second, all the Caterpies were cleared out of the arena, along with some Kakunas.

_Turtwig can't pair up with those Rock-type Pokémon…_ The boy was starting to sweat, especially now that Turtwig was out of his sight again. "Turtwig! Tackle those Kakunas!"

The Pokémon took the order and avoided another Graveler's Rock Throw, running towards a Kakuna at full speed to tackle it off the arena.

However, he couldn't even touch the Pokémon, since a Geodude came and tackled the cocoon instead, instantly flinging it away.

"Darn!" The boy cursed as the Geodude quickly turned to Turtwig with its arms open, preparing to grab him.

_I didn't want to use this move now… but it's either that or lose…!_

"Use Grass Knot, Turtwig!"

While most in the crowd were surprised to hear this, the small Pokémon did leap and move the small leafs on his head, issuing roots to erupt from within the stage to grab Geodude and throw it to the ground with a loud thump, where it was susceptible to other moves.

"Now Tackle! _This is gonna hurt…!_"

Turtwig quickly leaned his head and rammed Geodude directly in the main body, sending it rolling out of the arena and against its trainer, knocking both out.

"Phew… That was a close one…"

"Hey! What'cha think you're doin'?" A tall, bulky man suddenly yelled into Raul's ears. "If you wanna fight that badly, then you'll have to face the consequences! Graveler! Rock Throw!"

Raul gasped in shock as the Graveler picked rocks from its body and speedily threw them at Turtwig; however, the Pokémon acted on its own and avoided them, preparing for the new orders.

"Way to go, Turtwig! Grass Knot again!"

"Whaaat?"

The man's hollers weren't in vain; as the roots appeared out of nowhere once again, the Graveler was completely trapped, chained to the ground by the arms; the crowd went wild when Nature turned against Graveler and threw it away like the previous Geodude, allowing Turtwig to jump towards the Pokémon and quickly tackle it even further away.

_The battle seems to be going well for him so far… But Turtwig's starting to wear out, and Raul has no way of using the Potions._ David thought, watching the battle develop. _But Raul seems so confident of himself…_ His eyes slowly scrolled to the Gym Leader by his side. While his serious look was still over him, David noticed he was biting his lip; which actually brought a smile to David's face. _Him, on the other hand…_

"Again! Grass Knot!" Raul commanded once more, using the stage as a support for himself. His legs were clearly starting to tremble, and sweat crawled down his face as if someone dropped a bottle of water on him.

The arena was almost empty now: the remaining Pokémon were Turtwig and another Graveler, the last one from the group of five he had managed to defeat.

_I don't know for how long Turtwig will be able to use Grass Knot, now…_ Raul thought, waiting for the start of the duel.

Turtwig and Graveler were facing each other in a staring match, each attempting to intimidate its opponent by showing how worn out they were.

"Ugh…" Exhaustion started to take over Raul, as not even the stage was enough to keep him standing.

The other trainer wasn't in a good shape either; he was also grabbing the arena's ropes, even though he seemed to be a tough, experienced Hiker.

"Turtwig!" Raul yelled with what energy was left for him. "Use Grass Knot!"

"T-Tackle!"

Speed decided the next turn; Turtwig, already close to fainting, managed to invoke the power of Nature, trapping the slow, numb Graveler, who was unable to curl itself and roll against the smaller Pokémon.

The roots, serving like a whip, trapped the Pokémon again, forming a knot around it before throwing it off the arena.

"_And there goes the battle!_" The referee announced, approaching Raul to raise his hand before the bell soundly rang, declaring the end of the match and the preliminaries. "_Contestant number 19, Raul, passes to the semi-finals_!"

But as Raul was about to celebrate, his legs finally gave in, and he fell on the stage's floor, sleeping, alongside his Pokémon.

"Oh boy…" David sighed, shaking his head. "I'll have to go pick him up."

"Wait." Brock suddenly spoke, turning to him. "The battle couldn't possibly have tired him out like that. And I know I've seen his face before."

The Gym Leader approached David to look at him more closely.

"You two… you're the guys who appeared on TV this morning. The ones who fought Team Rocket."

David cringed for a moment, trying to think about what to say.

"In that case…" Brock continued, placing a hand on his shoulder with a smile. "I'll have to be more careful about battling him."

The boy sighed in relief, thinking Brock was going to act like the guy from before.

"Let him rest. I want to have a fair battle. He'll have time during the B-Block preliminaries. I have a feeling it'll be a tough battle."

It was somewhat encouraging to hear such words; David felt so as he nodded and walked away, heading for the arena to get his cousin.

"Hey! You there!" A boy in a blue cap yelled from the gym's entrance, running up to David.

"Hum, me?" The boy answered, raising an eyebrow.

"Duh." The youngster replied, showing a small note on his hand. "A guy outside asked me to give you this message."

"…a message…?" David repeated, taking the note. It was actually a blue and red card, decorated with a golden plated coat of arms where a Skarmory, a Tauros and two other, unknown Pokémon posed in four different sections of a shield, below which was written [b]Nil Sine Pokémon[/b] in an also golden scroll. This symbol took the entirety of the card's back, whereas the message was written on the front with such handwriting that it seemed to have been drawn by a professional artist. "…a battle… Allan!"

"Well, none of my business." The youngster replied, but David didn't even hear it, as he anxiously read the rest of the card.

"At the Pewter City square… at five o'clock…"

"So? What should I tell him?"

"…"

_He really wants to humiliate me publicly…_ David though, knowing that the Pewter City square would be crowded at that time; and that it was the time for Raul to start his battle.

He quickly pulled the Pokégear and checked the time. Half an hour left…

"…I guess I don't have much of a choice… _It's just like Raul put it… I'll have to battle him._" He raised his eyes to the youngster and gave him back the card. "Tell him I'll be there."

"Alright then!" The youngster eagerly replied, taking the card and dashing away while shouting with his lungs: "**BATTLE AT FIVE O'CLOCK IN THE CITY SQUARE! BE THERE IF YOU DARE! DAVID LAWRIDE VERSUS ALLAN SHARAS!**"

David regretfully watched the boy go and spread the news around, running to wherever he could, except for Allan himself.

He knew he wouldn't need to; but he didn't need to spread the word like that, and yet he did it.

"I'm so dead…" He sighed, sitting against the wall.

"Hey David!" Raul suddenly came out, approaching his cousin. "I won! Did you see that? Those Grass Knots were just the perfect deal!"

"Humph… good for you…" David replied before letting his head fall between his hands. "I'm about to battle Allan."

"Allan?"

"Yeah, Allan!" The boy furiously answered, getting up all of a sudden. "The same guy who sold the Leaf Stone for you!"

"Whoa… you're going to battle him?" Raul's reaction left David all the more bothered as he began to feel excited. "And when are you going to do it?"

"…in half an hour."

"I want to-…"

"You can't." David quickly interrupted. "You're going to battle the semifinals. The battles are going to be at the same time."

Raul's excitement began to fade away.

"Oh…" He said, calming down.

"In any case… you gotta rest. There's a Gym Leader battle ahead of you, and you're in no shape to battle, right now." David instructed, forgetting his own battle for a moment. "I have to heal Poochyena and Pidgey… They're all I have to battle."

Raul nodded in reply.

"If you say so…" He raised a hand. "Then good luck."

David blankly stared at the hand for a moment, thinking about what he had just been wished.

A battle… a battle that would probably decide whether he was going to be the shame or the hero of Pewter City.

It was truly getting into his nerves.

But he wouldn't lose his calm; he would stand for it. He would battle, no matter what.

"Thanks. You too." He finally answered, shaking his cousin's hand before both walked away in separate paths… each one to their own battles.

* * *

**To be continued…**

* * *

**And here is the complimentary artwork, this time for Allan Sharas:**

**.net/fs71/f/2010/278/d/d/allan_sharas_by_**

**I also noticed the other links went down D:**


End file.
